janefromyork / Depositphotos.com
CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) – There’s a proposal in the state legislature to require any wheel tax to be approved by local voters at referendum. That’s the $15 to $40 fee that’s added to your vehicle registration to go towards road maintenance.
If such a law was in effect now, there would be no wheel tax for Marathon County.
Voters in Wausau would overwhelmingly vote no, since none of the wheel tax can be used on roads within city limits. The wheel tax collected from Wausau car owners goes to repair roads elsewhere like in Mosinee or Stratford.
Local voters might also remember the bait and switch over the Marathon County wheel tax. We were told that it was a one-time-only fee, and that it would sunset after one year. Only it didn’t. The county board decided, without voter input, that the money was needed on an ongoing basis. And it’s been collected each year since 2016.
This begs a few questions. Let’s assume that voters don’t want to ruin the alignment on their vehicles from under-maintained roads. Even people like me – the extreme tax averse – can be overwhelmed by potholes. So why are the politicians so reluctant to let us vote on it?
In Marathon County, the disingenuousness would lead many people to vote ‘no’. Wausaonias, who pay the wheen tax but get no benefit, would vote against it. Others who remember the one year promise that turned into an annual fee might vote ‘no’ too. There are others who might ask questions about the proposed county highway department facility. Is it being paid for with road tax money?
The way to get voters to say ‘yes’ to the wheel tax is to be straightforward. When local leaders aren’t, even allowing residents to vote on it becomes a liability.
Chris Conley
Comments